This is a review for both "Clockwork Man" and "Clockwork Man: The Hidden World" since I played them back to back and they share the same lead character. Actually, I've played both these games many times on a different PC before I got into Steam. So my playtimes you see for each will probably be less than a normal playthrough since I can whiz through the games by now. We'll start with game #1:

Pros: - Nice graphics and good character designs. The main girl, Miranda (YAY, she has my name!), is quite lovely. - The voice acting is also good, for the most part. I really like who they chose for Miranda. Some of the others can be a bit cheesy but it is amusing rather than irritating. - Interesting story. - Both games have a very neat hidden object feature. Scrolling and zooming. Not every scene but many allow you to move around the area. Some items are sneakily hidden behind others but just one click to the left or right will reveal them. - Both games also have an interesting hint system. You travel around with a little robot man and he'll help you locate those tough to find objects. He starts out with the ability to just tell you where a random something is. Then a little into the story, he learns how to give you an item's silhouette (which is the hint I prefer if I'm stuck). Further in the story, he gets other abilities. Like briefly highlighting each metal object on your HO list. - In both games, the music isn't spectacular but it's pleasant to listen to. Actually, in #2 there are a couple places with very lovely melodies. - When you beat each game, Freeplay opens up. This gives you random hidden object areas. Good for if you're in that "I have a craving to find stuff" mood.

Cons: - Neither game is connected to Steam while you're playing. So you won't be able to chat with friends or take steam screenshots. - Unfortunately, both games have issues when it comes to clicking on items. You'll find you need to be very precise and occasionally you'll need to click more than once or try clicking on a different part of the object. It doesn't happen TOO often or else I wouldn't be able to recommend these games. - Both games are short. Boo.

Now I'll list the differences in Clockwork Man: The Hidden World:

- The length is longer. Because of the higher difficulty, possibly much longer. - This game has a journal where Miranda records her adventures and anything of note. You WILL need to use this journal to solve quite a few puzzles. - There are many more puzzles in #2 and some of them are downright devious. There are no skip options either. Also, it's easy to miss things that you need in some scenes so you might get stuck for awhile. I love this game but it IS a bit aggravating sometimes. Those who enjoy a challenge will have fun. :D - The story has no tie-ins with the first game. The Hidden World's plot is much more involved than #1 and, in my opinion, fascinating. - The voice acting, again in my opinion, is better than the first game. (Miranda is still the same, which is good!) - Maybe it's my imagination but it seems the graphics are better in #2, though I'm pretty sure they used the same game engine. - When you finish the game, you can rewatch any of the cutscenes.

So in closing, I really enjoy both these games so I'm definitely recommending them to hidden object and puzzle fans. But, because of their short length, you should wait and grab them when they're on sale.

Important Note! The games might not load up for you, which is an issue I had. Right click on the Clockwork Man title, click on Properties, click on Local Files, click on Browse Local Files (which will bring up your program files for the games), right click on the Clockwork Man title again, click on Troubleshoot Compatibility, and finally click on Try recommended settings. I did that for each game and then they worked just fine.

This is the second in the series and if you liked that one then you'll like this one as it's just more of the same. Hidden object scenes with puzzles and adventure elements galore. Very pretty graphics, engaging storyline if just a tad predictable. Worth a look for HO fans.

The Hidden World continues the story of Miranda Calomy and her clockwork-friend, Sprocket. Like its predecessor, the basic goal is to search a series of beautifully drawn scenes to find a bunch of hidden objects. However, the sequel increases the scope of the original, both in length and gameplay. Where the first game lasted maybe 2-3 hours, this one seemed a bit longer (maybe around 3-4 hours, depending on how slowly you take things). The interface and quality of the puzzles have also improved as well. This time, the puzzles are much more involved, and actually require some real thought at times! Amazing, I know. It's a nice improvement. However, with that change, one positive trait of the first game is now lost - the sequel is no longer kid friendly. Thinking back on it, there are probably a couple of puzzles in here that younger kids wouldn't be able to solve on their own (one involving classic works of literature springs to mind), and most of the puzzles are at least a bit more difficult overall. So, while the hidden-object scenes are still great for kids, they might need help with some of the puzzles that connect them. If you enjoy hidden-object games and are looking to fill a few hours with (mostly) mindless, casual fun, you'll probably like this. Again, my only issue against recommending this fully (assuming you like the genre), would be the price. I feel like it's on the higher end for what you get, even considering the potentially "endless" replay of randomized scenes. So, just take that into consideration when considering a purchase, or maybe wait for a sale. Otherwise, as with the first game, if you don't care for mindless hidden-picture games or puzzles, move along, there's nothing to see here.

The hidden world is a good name, this puzzle game should be hidden so it never sees the light of day. Like the last game, this game suffers from low resolution objects, objects that are a few pixels in size, and objects where clicking right on them may be a futile effort. Playing this game is similar to being locked out of your house while drunk take all your keys off your keyring throwing them wildly about then attempting to find and pick up your door key with your elbows. The voice acting is very good, but the story isnt enough to keep anyone playing, in fact this game is good at putting you to sleep. Puzzles due to the low resolution, and being finicky, are just so tiring to complete making the game experience feel labored without satisfaction. There is no way to skip puzzles or solutions, or hints, or a guide in this game which can lead players stuck unable to finish the game.

A fairly typical "find the hidden object" game. The plot of this sequal is better than the first game and you miss nothing by skipping directly. On Linux, I found both games to suffer severely with graphical glitches, poor performance and misuse of widescreen resolutions, to the impact of showing what should be off screen graphics in the letterboxing used to pad the 4:3 ratio scenes on my widescreen display. Overall, enjoyable but does little to separate itself from the plethora of similar games on the market.

Quality hidden objects combined with a handful of interesting puzzles and a decent story. The voice overs are a mixed bag ranging from good to super annoying and the ending felt abrupt. Its a fairly short game, maybe 20 scenes but the hybrid of hidden object with puzzles I haven't solved 500 times before was nice and the scenes were all top quality and visually pleasing. The game offers "scrolling" and "zooming" scenes that let you pan around to find the required objects which I thought was a nice change.

Definitely worth a sale purchase if you enjoy the genre. Looking forward to playing the others and I hope there will be more.

This game is a big step up from the original Clockwork Man, but doesn't quite go far enough. It's more involved with the story and puzzle-solving, almost like a direct rip-off of the Samantha Swift series in that regard, but towards the end, you solve a series of rather challenging puzzles, then it just ends abruptly. The visuals are better this time around with limited animation in some scenes and more varied settings. If you're a huge fan of hidden object games and can get this really cheap in a sale, it's a "maybe", but I don't strongly recommend it. You're better off with Midnight Mysteries, Alex Hunter, and Samantha Swift.

While the adventuring aspect of the story is okay, I wasn't very fond of its morality. I think it's weird that a child-friendly hidden object game is making statements about how it's wrong to want to live longer and death is great. The first Clockwork Man's story did the same thing. I would've like to have seen more focus on its Steampunk elements than all the philosophizing about the human lifespan.

It stopped playing right in the middle of a puzzel. five pieces missing, started over 3 three pieces missing. over and over It wouldnt lt me play on.......and no way to get help. unless this is it......sharri101

This is stylistically similar to the first game, with many of the same positive qualities, and many of the same flaws. The scrolling, zoom-able hidden puzzles are just as challenging (and frustrating, and messy), the music and art are just as beautiful, and the voice acting is just as over-the-top.

The plot is also just as convoluted (although this one feels more like a campy homage to the classic film "Journey to the Center of the Earth," and less like "we just didn't think this through"). I was honestly expecting the story to be a direct continuation from the previous game, but it does not seem to connect at all, aside from starring the same main character and a similarly-named villain.

I feel like this game had slightly more of a focus on the point-and-click adventuring and mini-games, which helped to add a level of depth and content that wasn't entirely present in the original. These elements were clever and intuitive, and blended seamlessly with the hidden object puzzles to produce a more well-balanced and interesting game.

Overall, this was a fun, sometimes frustrating game that is worth buying on sale. I would give it a 6.5/10